Govt bans sale of few Old Monk Rum variants:Mc Dowell's No 1 Rum, beverages of 3 Madhya Pradesh-based companies also on hitlist

India’s food safety regulator, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), has taken action against several major alcohol companies for using artificial flavours and displaying misleading details on the bottle adhesive labels. Govt bans sale of beverages of 3 MP-based companies Three of the companies whose FSSAI banned beverage sale are from Madhya Pradesh. What is the main issue? FSSAI found that some alcohol manufacturers were adding artificial rum flavour to rum and whisky flavour to whisky. Normally, whisky and rum get their natural taste and smell through proper aging, fermentation, and base ingredients (like malt or molasses). Instead, some companies used plain neutral alcohol (cheap, unaged spirit) and added artificial flavours to make it taste like standard whisky or rum. Are all flavours banned? No. FSSAI clarified that adding flavours like coffee or vanilla is allowed if there is a valid reason. However, adding whisky flavour to whisky or rum flavour to rum is prohibited. FSSAI compared this practice to adding tea flavour to tea or coffee flavour to coffee—it serves no genuine purpose and misleads consumers about the quality of the drink. Strict rules for product names The apex food regulator of India declared that drinks made using added identical flavours are sub-standard. Companies cannot call these drinks simply Whisky or Rum. They must name them clearly on the front of the bottle as "Whisky-Flavoured Spirit" or "Rum-Flavoured Spirit". The regulator also caught companies making false claims about how long their liquor was aged: For instance, ‘Old Monk XXX RUM’ claimed to be ‘7 years old blended’. Investigation showed that less than 5% was aged rum, while over 95% was unaged neutral alcohol. FSSAI rules state that if a drink is a blend, the age shown on the label must be based on the youngest spirit in the blend. What happens next? Notices Issued: FSSAI issued enforcement notices and stop-sale orders to multiple factories. Well-known brands affected include McDowell’s No. 1, Royal Challenge, Antiquity Blue, Bagpiper, and Old Monk variants. Conditional Relief: Some manufacturers appealed and received temporary permission to sell existing stock, provided they add clear labels on the front stating the true nature of the product. Bottom Line: FSSAI is cracking down on artificial shortcuts to ensure consumers get genuine products that are accurately as per information mentioned in the labels.